


House of Wolves

by flightless_soren



Category: Room of Swords (Webcomic)
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Fluff and Angst, M/M, Violence, Werewolves and vampires oh my
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-17
Updated: 2021-01-20
Packaged: 2021-03-05 05:08:54
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 18,653
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25308769
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/flightless_soren/pseuds/flightless_soren
Summary: Gyrus has a lot of questions. Being kidnapped from Don's fortress by a pack of werewolves is just one of the many unanswered ones.
Relationships: Gyrus Axelei/Kodya Karevic
Comments: 7
Kudos: 67





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> That one werewolf/vampire fanfic nobody asked for but I am here to provide.

The fortress rises impossibly high, each steepled turret curling upwards to brush against the twinkling night sky. The formidable walls are made from stacked bricks and stone, age having wormed its way into its cracks to form moss and cobwebs. There are no gardens before or around any of the walls, only burnt land and rocks. It’s a warning for all of those who dare to enter. 

Stakes bury into the ground and litter across the front entrance, framing the grand staircase that leads up to the carved oak doors. The smell of old, rotten flesh is hardly a warm welcome. The picked at corpses of those slain in battle are pierced by the jagged stakes, skulls cracked at the top with the brute force of having been skewed right through. Not a strip of flesh or blood remains, the carnivorous crows having made quick work over the weeks. Yet the smell still manages to hover around like an obnoxious fly.

The grass no longer grows in these parts, the piles of bones over the years making it infertile. While they do eventually erode with enough time and mother nature's help, it’s as if the spirits of those once living have cursed the ground before them. 

It matters little, for in time, the corpses will be replaced by others. 

An unmistakable smell of death lingers around the bone graveyard, hugging at the fortress walls and slowly seeping through the brick and mortar. Only an idiot would approach the fortress head on, even a infant could clearly feel how dangerous a place it is.

This is exactly why Kodya goes around the back.

Following his pack mates fast fading scent, he tries not to gnash his teeth together in frustration. Fully aware of why Sylvia has snuck off in the dead of night, at the very least she could have run it by him first so he could _attempt_ to stop her. 

Going to Don’s fortress alone, likely unarmed and with a head full of revenge was not going to get them anywhere. 

As a full blooded lycanthrope, Kodya has lived through many turns of the seasons, long before Don had even stepped foot onto their lands. Their pack had been moderately sized back then, a pack that allowed a mixed blood of wolves to freely come and go as they pleased. For the most part, they had lived on relatively peaceful terms with the neighbouring humans, whose territory was in a deep gully many, many miles away from the lush forests the wolves roamed in. 

Long before Kodya’s time, their pack had signed a treaty between themselves and the human settlement, swearing for peaceful trade and terms between the two very different species. For the most part, it had worked well. The humans could hunt and cull the trees as long as the prospects were shared equally between them. In return, the wolves would protect the humans from any danger.

And dangers there were. 

While the wolves were a reasonable bunch, their territory was shared by many creatures of the night. The forest dwellers were docile, shy fae, unicorns and pixies; it was the outside lands that needed to be feared.

Far away from their woods lay the eastern rangers, an active volcanic cluster who’s smoke often obscured the setting sun. It would take a wolf many days to reach the slopes on foot, but for those that dwelled in those harsh lands, it was a mere few hours by flight. While Kodya had only ever encountered the fire nymphs- a significantly more peaceful race- he’d heard tales of lonely dragons that roamed the skies and in pits of lava, dangerous harpies that nested in the rocks and terrible stone golems hidden in the caves.

Beyond those hills, the elders' tales began to dry up. Nobody had gone further beyond those mountains. 

Once in a blue moon their pack would get a wayward traveller, sometimes a stray vampire or night shade, who would sit with them until dusk and recount their travels and give them insight into what lay further out there. One such traveller described his journey to a thing called the ocean, something Kodya didn’t much like the sound of; he preferred all four paws firmly on the ground. The biggest body of water he could stand was the little river that ran right through their territory. 

Kodya’s world was very small.

He only needed to be concerned with what was in front of his nose- not dangerous fairytales of far off lands.

Regardless, the treaty expected the wolf clan to nightly patrol the human boarders and ward off any sign of danger. 

How ironic it would be, that humans would end up being the most dangerous thing in their small world. 

Everything changed when one day a young man called Don walked into the human gully, leaving behind a blazing trail of carnage that spread into and far beyond the wolves home. 

Whatever Don had told the humans immediately made them turn against the wolves. 

Becoming friends with a werewolf meant making a friend for life. It was in their nature to give and protect, and to treat everyone like a family member. Once that trust was broken it would never be easily repaired.

Betrayed by the humans, their forest was set alight one night, gutting the entire forest and what the fires couldn’t kill that night they were instead finished off by human weapons. Kodya could easily recall the heaviness filling his lungs that night, choking for breath as the entire night sky turned a deep bloody red from the embers licking upwards and strangling the air around it. His mother had pushed him and Sylvia deep under the muddy roots of a great weeping willow that grew on the edges of the riverside, begging the spirit to protect them from harm.

It was the last time he would ever see her alive.

Kodya and Sylvia were the only survivors from that night, and for many years had lived in fearful silence in the ashes of the dead forest. 

The only surviving part of their territory was the enchanted willow they’d taken refuge in; somehow the spirit that resided inside it’s branches had shielded the flames from even burning a single leaf off. The elders had referred to the spirit that dwelled inside as Nephthys. Asides from the company of the gentle spirit, the young wolves were left quite alone. A once beautiful, lush forest, reduced to nothing more than skeletal white trees and ground as black as tar. 

Making do with what they could, the two wolves took to living in Nephthys’ branches, waiting for the day the forest would regrow once again.

Significantly younger than her adoptive brother, Sylvia’s quivering heart began to harden from that day onwards, a vengeful flame burning bright in her chest as she swore to one day take the monster hunter down by her own claws. Not only did Don take her family that night, but he also took her voice away. Vocal cords damaged beyond repair from the fire and smoke, the siblings had to come up with a new way for Sylvia to communicate through the use of hand signs.

At least they had all the time in the world.

While they recovered, Don’s bloody path would not stop there.

From those who still visited their forest, they would tell Kodya and Sylvia tales of how Don and a more select group of humans had begun to hunt and take down every creature and monster they could find- stamping out and making a safer haven for the humans in the gully. 

The entire sector was terrified of the unstoppable human, but none of the widespread clans trusted the others enough to form an alliance to attempt to stop his reign of terror. 

“He’ll run out of lives to take eventually,” Nephthys’ spirit had reasoned with the pups, Sylvia immediately standing up, tail lashing and tears forming in her wide eyes. “It’s better to keep out of his way.”

 _You didn’t lose everything!_ Sylvia had signed before dashing off. 

Kodya had noticed recently that his step sister was nearing her breaking point. While the trees were at last sprouting green leaves, healthy shoots of grass pushing their way out of the rejuvenated soil, Sylvia could no longer sit in silence. She needed Don’s head. _Now_. 

While Kodya’s loss was as equally as significant as her’s, something inside him could not allow him to hate as much as she did. The fire that burnt in Sylvia, was all but extinguished inside of Kodya. Instead it was a deep, primal grief that hung heavy over his chest and heart each day, and if it wasn’t for Sylvia keeping him going perhaps he would have quietly gone off by himself to join his pack mates at the edge of a ravine.

And the desire to protect her from harm leads his nose to this awful place. 

He pauses in front of a large stain glass window, just one of the many unnecessary and gaudy adornments of the fortress. There is a portion of the design that’s been shattered. A pink tuft of fur caught on a broken shard indicates which way Sylvia has gone. Hefting himself up onto the stone ledge, Kodya shimmies his way through the broken section of the window, wincing as a few sharp edges of glass dig into his sides. 

Landing soundless on his paw pads, Kodya is infinitely relieved to find that the room he’s entered into is empty. In fact, the room appears bare of anything essential. A few nailed up wooden boxes are shoved up against another window, a thin layer of dust indicates just how long it’s been since another being has even stepped foot in here.

Just how many useless, unused rooms did one man need?

Spotting the only door that leads out of the room, Sylvia’s scent is sharp all around the framework. Her nerves finally getting the best of her.

Creeping through the fortress makes all the fur rise on the back of Kodya’s neck. The smell of death is thick and heady, if he parts his mouth any further he fears he’ll gag on the stench. 

None of the torch brackets are lit, the only source of light flows from the moonlight pooling through the many windows that line the corridors. Nothing stirs. Nothing breaths. It is as if nobody is at home. 

The only thing Kodya is sure of is Sylvia’s warm smell growing ever closer, until _finally_ , he spies a pink bushy tail poking out from under a stone bench. He almost goes to stamp on it, before remembering where he is.

“Sylvia,” he hisses, wincing at the loudness of his own voice against the defeating silence.

Her tail stirs violently, before the young wolf wiggles out backwards. While Kodya is used to their bizarre forms, he can certainly see why humans would do a double take. Lower half completely canine, it's only until they stand up on those hind legs and reveal their entirely human looking top half is when the confusion seats in. A hunting dagger is strapped to the small of her back, bright yellow eyes wide and dilated as she glances at him. _What are you doing here?_

 _Making sure I don’t lose another family member. Stop being reckless and come back with me,_ he signs back, feeling too uneasy to communicate verbally. He reaches out a hand to grab her, but she jumps out of his reach. _Oh we are_ not _arguing about this in Don’s god damn hell hol-_

A loud clatter makes both of the wolf’s fur stand on end. The sound is tremendous in the hallways, bouncing off and rickashading up into the banisters above them. Neither of them move a muscle, eyes and ears swivelling to the source of the noise. Just a little further down the hallway from Sylvia is a half ajar door. The scuffles clearly come from inside there. 

Mouth set in a grim line, Sylvia immediately pads silently towards it, Kodya resisting the urge to pull at his ears in frustration. Fearlessly she wrenches the door open and steps inside; all he can do is follow behind. 

The room appears to be some kind of grand dining hall. A table much too large for a single residence stands before them, stretching down the entire length of the room and neatly set up and ready to serve its guests. The cutlery shines silver white in the moonlight that streams from the sky light above. It softly falls onto the many shards of the chandelier that hangs from a thick chain. Kodya has only been inside a human's home a handful of times- enough times to get an idea of how they work. But no house he’s been in has been quite like this one. 

Whatever has been making the noise is now silent, and Kodya can’t pick up any traces of what may have caused it.

As Sylvia begins to circle the long table to look for the cause of the sounds, something on top of the table catches Kodya’s eyes. While all the plates are empty of food, for some reason, a single white beet lies discarded next to a napkin. Picking it up by it’s soggy stem, Kodya gives it a quick sniff- nothing. Turning it over in his hands, two large puncture marks which pierce through it’s white flesh do not go unnoticed. 

Before Kodya can try to catch his step sister’s attention, something from behind barrels right into him. Or was it from above? Too disorientated to decide which, all Kodya knows is he’s now face first on the cold stone floor, back aching as something heavy and very solid is perched on top of him. How the hell had someone snuck up on him, his nose could sniff out anything! “Alright, one of you better start talking and tell me how on earth you got in here- I said talk!” his delicate ears get pulled, head yanking upwards and forcing a yelp of pain out of him.

“Hey, lay off would you!?” he snarls, incredibly agitated he can’t swivel to get a good look at his attacker.

From voice alone, he sounds male and young, possibly one of the humans Don has hired as part of his team. The truly unnerving thing about the situation is Kodya can’t smell any kind of scent coming from him…or any type of _presence_. 

Every being had some kind of presence, or an aura, if you will. It was a talent few in their pack had mastered, Kodya being one of them. If he could describe it, it was feeling and sometimes even seeing, a type of energy someone gave off. Sylvia’s was bright and vibrant, like being bathed in a warm patch of sunlight.

Whatever was on top of him, feels like nothing. 

The hand against his ears and hair is icy cold. 

At the sound of her pack mates yelp, Sylvia moves. Faster than either of them see her coming, she launches herself at the person on top of Kodya, claws and fangs bared. From the strong start he expects more resistance, but instead, his assailant gets knocked away. They land about a foot to the side and he hears Sylvia rip into him. 

Thinking it’s over before it could really begin, Kodya gingerly sits up before Sylvia starts to scream. The noises she makes are inhuman, damaged vocal cords only able to produce shattered, jarred notes of anguish. Peeling off their attacker, the wolf grips at her throat, mouth wide in a horrified wail as what looks like green, radioactive liquid, begins to eat at the flesh of her mouth and face. 

Paralysed in shock, Kodya is dimly aware of his brain trying to protect itself from the scene, Sylvia’s writhing body triggering what could only be akin to a human panic attack. His mind goes into fight mode at the fear of losing his last surviving family member. 

Rounding on the scentless attacker, his eyes widen even further. It’s just a stupid kid! Looking just as horrified as Kodya feels, and covered in the same green liquid as Sylvia- no, that isn’t right- it’s _coming from him_. Every part that Sylvia bit and torn into, leaks glowing green blood. 

What the hell is he?

“I didn’t mean to hurt her!” his bright violet eyes fill with tears- somehow Kodya believes him.

“Tell me how to stop it,” Kodya orders, realising that beating the tar out of some kid isn’t going to help the situation. Kneeling beside Sylvia’s thrashing body he gently lifts her up and into his arms, her face rolling against his chest on her limp neck. The damage is terrible, and Kodya feels his fangs pierce his bottom lip as he tries not to cry. 

Weakly, Sylvia tries to raise her hands to sign. 

_It hurts_. 

“I know, don’t speak Syl. I’m here now,” grabbing her hand to make her stop wasting energy, he glares across at the panicked boy. “Kid! Don’t just sit there, do something!” 

The harsh words seem to snap him out of whatever thoughts were trapping him in his head. Glancing around as if for inspiration, he nods to himself. “I-I should be able to reverse the effects. But I’ll need something stronger than the heart beets I usually use,” he looks at Kodya. “Hold out your arm.”

“Wh-hang on, tell me what the hell you’re doing fi-”

“I need your blood, the synthetic vegetables my dad’s been giving me aren’t powerful enough for me to fix everything,” he says all in one big rush.

Kodya’s ears stand straight up. Of course. It all made sense now. The lack of smell and dangerously low body temperature. The kid is a vampire. Although Kodya’s _never_ come across a vampire with flesh melting green blood before. 

He nods. He would do anything to save his family.

Wordlessly holding out his wrist, Kodya pulls a pained face as two incredibly large and sharp looking canines grow past the boy’s lip, piercing directly into one of his arteries and rendering him momentarily breathless. He can _feel_ his life’s blood pulling out of the bite mark, stomach crawling with fear at how vulnerable a position he’s put himself into. 

“I’m not going to kill you, don’t worry,” in his dizzy state, Kodya can’t tell if the vampire speaks to his mind directly or says it out loud. The sentiment is sweet, but Kodya hasn’t stayed alive this long on sugary promises. 

Bitten wrist relinquished, Kodya watches the vampire’s eyes grow unnaturally bright, hair almost a bright a green as his blood starts growing at an alarming fast pace and falling all around him as he lifts a hand to Sylvia’s face. Another glow starts, this time bright yellow. Kodya hasn’t noticed until now, but the vampire wears what appears to be a full body suit. The strange yellow markings which cover it appear to be moderating whatever powers are locked tightly inside his body and releasing it in a burst of green light. His blood peels off Sylvia’s wounds, the flesh hissing and reforming around the holes in her face and throat.

Before long, she looks completely unharmed.

With an exhausted grunt, the vampire lowers his hand and slumps over, eyes fluttering closed and the glow of his suit fading back to black.

It feels as if Kodya is the only person breathing in the entire fortress. 

Staring down in absolutely bafflement at the passed out creature before them both, his brain tries to play catch up to what just happened. Never, has he come across a vampire with that type of power before. Usually solitary creatures, all he really knows about them are the handful of times they would appear in their territory. Rather docile given their reputation, they simply wondered the night with no real purpose.

Sylvia stirs against him slightly and glancing down mets him with a shaky smile and raised fist. _I’m okay._ She attempts to raise her head. _What happened?_

Feeling that it is significantly safer to talk again, Kodya replies. “Our vampire assailant here saved your life.”

_Vampire?_

She turns in his arms, assessing the sleeping creature on the ground. _I thought he was trying to kill us._

Kodya is silent while he considers her words. From what the vampire had said, to his actions, that didn’t seem like the case.

“I think his own powers surprised him. The way he reacted… I don’t think he’s even fought another being before now. And, to be fair, he technically didn’t harm either of us- it was his blood landing on you that caused it all. I think he just wanted us out of his house.”

Nodding in agreement, Sylvia staggers up onto her hind paws, patting down the melted remains of her clothing. _What should we do with him?_

It feels almost cruel to leave him drained on the floor like this. He glances at his pack mate, and could see the same consideration dancing behind her eyes. While her desire to seek out revenge on Don is large, there is still room in her heart for compassion. _Do you think Don is keeping him locked up in here?_

Honestly, he hadn’t considered that.

From their perspective, it also made the most sense. But why would the fable monster hunter be keeping a monster _locked away_ , rather than simply killing it?

“He mentioned a father. He may have been referring to Don.”

Sylvie’s eyebrows shoot upwards in puzzlement. _Don’s not a vampire, is he?_

“Unless he’s really good at hiding the fact, that seems highly unlikely. There’s something weird going on between him and the kid here. I don’t like the idea of leaving him behind, he’ll just end up as another creature for Don to use.”

 _He might be able to tell us more once he wakes up,_ Sylvia suggests before nodding in silent agreement. _Either way, I want to take him back too. I can’t stand the idea of letting Don rob another creature of its life._

Giving no indication of waking any time soon, Kodya kneels back down and hoists the vampire onto his back. The sheer amount of hair growth in those few seconds of power almost have it touching the floor. Impressive, given Kodya’s height. 

_Did he always have long hair?_ Sylvia gives one of the free flowing strands a pull. The vampire gives no sign of life at the action.

“It was a weird side effect when he healed you. Maybe we could ask Neph when we get back; she’s a healer too so might know something.”

 _Vampires are weird_ , Sylvia concludes solemnly, all thoughts of revenge flying from her mind as they trek back out of the fortress. 

* * *

Before they can quite make it out and into the trees to safety, a voice calling from above stops them as they cross the dead wasteland of the grounds encompassing the building. Peering upwards, a winged figure circles them in the waxing moonlight. 

“Crap. Do you think Don hired harpy guards too?”

Without answering, Sylvia raises her fists in preparation to strike.

With his hands full, all Kodya can really do is set off at a brisk pace towards the tree line with his pack mate covering his back. As he runs, the figure dives out of the sky. “Hand over the boy!” The command solidifies his fears that the vampire is clearly important to Don in some way. Turning around so his body faces the attacker and shields the vampire from harm, Sylvia jumps upwards just as the creatures clawed feet connect with his chest.

For the most part, his dense muscle mass protects him from the brunt of the sharp claws, Sylvia reaching up to clutch at her wings softens the blow incredibly so. The bird-like creature twists while in mid attack, trying to shake the growling wolf off herself. Her wings and hair are alight with soft fire, a human like body clad in protective armour from deadly ground attacks.

Promising to apologise later for the rough treatment, Kodya drops the vampire onto the ground before lunging upwards, knocking the bird backwards before pressing his entire body weight down, sending them all heavily onto the blackened dirt below. Sylvia rolls away, quickly standing over the collapsed vampire and protectively lifting her lips in a silent snarl.

Not wasting a moment, Kodya draws one of his daggers strapped to his waist ties, leaning down and prepares to slit the attackers throat. While he has claws, it is much faster with a trusty blade. 

“Wait- Kodya! Is that you?”

Somehow, the bird knows his name.

Squinting against the flames, they finally die down enough to reveal her face. The bird isn’t a bird at all. Rather, it’s a fire nymph. “Tori?” he questions, as it has been many years since last lying eyes on his old, supposed, friend. He narrows his eyes in mistrust. “… what do you want with the vampire?”

“If you get off me, I can explain!”

“No thanks,” he jabs the blade against her throat once more. “The last time we saw you was when we helped defend your lands against the stone golems. Didn’t see you lot return the favour when Don wiped out our entire pack a few moons later.” 

He sees a flush stain high on her cheek bones; one of shame. “I..I did not know.”

“Oh you just _conveniently_ missed the giant forest fire right on your borders?”

“Don had our hands tied, wolf!” She suddenly shouts. “His influence had spread far before coming to your pack. He knew we had an alliance, and to sever it, he has been holding our queen hostage and using her as leverage for us to work under him.”

Kodya sits back on his haunches, ears dropping a little. Why did it always come back to that damned human? 

“Regardless of your situation. We’re not handing over the vampire.”

“Do you plan to use him as a hostage?” Tori frowns when realising the wolf is in no hurry to release her.

The question surprised him. On reflection, he supposes that _is_ what this all looks like.

He glances back at Sylvia who lifts her shoulders in a slight shrug, unable to offer a better reasoning. Their relationship dynamic always troubles Kodya, the wolf far too used to following orders than making his own. 

Well, no time like the present to start trying. 

“Call it what you will, but neither of us are going to let Don continue taking whatever he wants. The kid doesn’t belong with him, and that’s that. He deserves to at least have the option of freedom; he can choose to come back if he wishes.”

Tori lets out a long sigh, the back of her head hitting the ground as she stares up at the sky. “Why must you make my job so much harder than it needs to be?” 

Unsure of her words, Kodya nervously grips the handle of his blade more firmly.

“Relax, I will not harm you. Although I would still appreciate it if you would let me up-”

“I’m not going to let up the woman who’s siding with the man who _murdered_ my entire family,” Kodya snarls, a sharp hot flash of pain burning against his chest. He wishes all the pain building up inside could be directed towards her delicate neck. A gentle hand falls onto his shoulder. Looking up into Sylvia’s kind expression she slowly shakes her head.

_Let’s just hear her out?_

Maybe it’s a good thing he has her around to ground him back to reality. 

Backing off, Kodya quickly scoops the vampire back up into his arms, not believing for a second the nymph won’t snatch him back. Glancing at the boy's face, his expression has barely shifted from inside the fortress. Eyes closed and complexion deathly pale; as if in a deep sleep. He has no pulse or breath, making it impossible to know if he’s even alive- as alive as a vampire can get. 

As she pulls herself up from the ground, Tori carefully begins to speak.

“When Don came to us, he made us all swear our loyalty lest we see our Queen’s head roll. I have been… my job… is here. At his fortress. Looking after him. Gyrus,” she looks pointedly at the vampire. “I do so from afar, Don ordered me to never reveal myself to him. But I am sure he knows, he is far too clever for his own good,” Tori’s eyes flick back to Kodya’s. “How much has he told you?”

For a moment, Kodya considers lying. Then realises how pointless it would be. “Not much. He mentioned his father, which I assumed was Don.”

Tori nods. “I am sure Gyrus’ real sire is out there somewhere, but for now he is in Don’s custody. Raising him is too kind a word, but I am sure the boy sees it that way. I know I have done a poor job of proving myself to you, but I do wish for the same thing. The boy does not deserve to be locked away like this.”

Sylvia catches his attention, wishing to speak with Tori. Translating on her behalf, Kodya asks, “Letting the vampire go would put your Queen in danger. Why are you doing this?”

“Yes, it would. However, it is unlikely she would be slain as it would void the contract we have between Don; I am more likely to take the worst of the blame. It is a small price to pay for his freedom.”

“Why?” Kodya still doesn’t understand.

“You can do what I can not. He represents all of us, locked in a cage against Don. I know you do not plan to use him as a hostage but… think about it. Gyrus means something to Don. Taking him away _also_ means something.”

“There’s no point in creating more senseless violence.”

“You could also end it. There never has to be just two choices.”

 _You have a choice too, come with us_ , Sylvia signs as Kodya translates once more. 

“Not until I know my Queen is safe. I would suggest you do not linger long in your forest home. While you have my word I will not reveal anything, nothing gets by that man. He will find you sooner or later. It may be best if you travel far away from here.”

Sylvia stirs restlessly, hands clenching and Kodya knows her well enough that this doesn’t sit right with her. Running away wasn’t in her blood. “We’ll consider it, thank you Tori,” interrupting her quickly, he signals with his tail for her to hush. “Try to stay safe,” he says in ways of farewells, feeling as if they have lingered around the perimeters far too long already. God knows when Don would return to his home.

“Promise me that you will keep Gyrus safe."

Although he feels he owes the nymph very little, it goes against his very nature to not help someone in need. “We will.”

As Tori takes off in a shower of embers, the two wolves trek back into the welcoming darkness of their forest home.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I promise it'll all make sense later on.

Very few things live in their forest now. The foliage has grown back stronger against the forest fire thanks to Nephthys’ magic, but that doesn’t mean the prey and past inhabitants wish to return. If they’re lucky, sometimes the wolves will wake to the noise of the dawn chorus- other days, the air is devoid of any sounds of life. This makes hunting an near impossible task. Sometimes a lone deer will make its way nervously into the undergrowth, but most of the time, it was sad meals of skinny mice and voles. 

Kodya is not looking forward to a third mouth to try and feed. 

Making their way back into familiar looking territory, Nephthys’ willow slowly comes into view. Her tree always glitters with a slightly unnatural white light, an unfelt breeze managing to ruffle her long strands of leaves. The only two constants in their lives is the shelter of her branches, and the fresh river water at her roots.

From up above, the dawn light cards through the dense pine needles, and Kodya glances nervous at the kid’s black bound hands bobbing in front of him. He hasn’t started to burst into flames despite the light dappling onto his suit. Hopefully another vampire myth debunked. 

“Welcome home!” Nephthys’ disembodied voice calls out to them, her leaves rustling in interest as she spies their third party member. “Who’s this sleeping beauty?” 

_ This is Gyrus! _ Sylvia introduces him proudly.  _ We stole him from Don.  _

“You went to Don’s fortress?” the firmness in her voice is clear. Sylvia’s fur wilts at the disappointment in her voice. “Both of you know better than that- what if you’d gotten hurt?”

“Everything was fine. Don was out on a hunt anyway,” Kodya tries to brush her off.

Humming to herself and deciding to drop the subject for now, Nephthys begins to lower her branches. “Kody, bring him here. I sense that he’s hurt somewhere.”

Relieved to finally put Gyrus down, Kodya gently lowers him into the indent of branches she has made. Like a giant bird’s nest. After a moment, Nephthys’ healing light begins to wash over the unmoving vampire. “He’s very tired.”

“I’m sure all vampires are perpetually tired,” Kodya says, taking the weight off his aching paws as he rests against her trunk. From a little ways away, Sylvia is busy scavenging in among the bushes; trying to find something to feed themselves with. 

“Kody,” she laughs, her leaves shaking a little. 

Okay, maybe that had been a bit rude. 

“Is he sleeping?” he glances across at his silent form.

“Yes. Not to worry, I sense he has simply used up a lot of his energy. Although, I can also feel a lot of old and untreated wounds from inside him.” 

Kodya’s ears flicker backwards uneasily. Tori had made it seem that Don was simply keeping him around as a pet and nothing more. 

“Is what Sylvia said true? Does he really belong to Don?”

“Yeah, just another one of Don’s victims from the sounds of things. We found him inside Don’s fortress trying to make us leave,” here he pauses, already feeling tired at recounting everything. While he trusts Nephthys a great deal, there is something playing at the back of his mind. “Would you mind not bringing it up with him when he wakes up? It’s just… before he passed out he referred to Don as his father so I… I don’t think he has any idea he was being kept there against his will. Or even knows what Don’s been doing. For all we know, he may have actually shown Gyrus compassion.” 

Her branches creak. “You can’t just keep it a secret from him.”

“I don’t know how he’ll react when he wakes up,” Kodya rests his chin on his knees. “I’d rather just deal with one thing at a time.” 

He would be the first to admit he’s not very good at this decision making thing.

“Very well.”

Their conversation dies off as the spirit fully concentrates on the remaining work on Gyrus’s body. Growing a little too self aware that all he’s doing is staring at the kid’s peaceful face, Kodya jumps when Sylvia slides her back down the trunk to sit next to him. She holds out a handful of berries and mushrooms. 

A snack as good as any when it comes to the barren forest. Sylvia starts to sign at him while he munches. 

_ So, what now? What do we do with Gyrus? _

“I suppose we ca- wait,” he peers at her hands, and it takes his brain a moment to catch up to what hand gesture she had made when referring to Gyrus. “Did you seriously just sign his name as strawberry?”

A wide grin splits Sylvia’s face, fangs and all, as she deliberately and slowly uses the special sign reserved for his name too. 

_ He’s family now _ . 

Kodya can’t help but smile a little at her gesture. 

“Oh is he now?”

Her cheeks puff out a little in protest. _ I want to rebuild our pack. Who’s to say we can’t take in every lost soul we find? _

_ I know _ , he signs, because it always means a little bit more when he does. He reaches out to gently take her hand in his. Sylvia smiles, eyes shining with something long since lost. New hope. 

_ Are we really going to take him hostage?  _ Her brows crease a little in worry. 

“I mean…. technically we did just kidnap him,” he looks over at Gyrus. Could it really be called that when there was no malicious intent behind it? He supposes it  _ is _ for selfish reasons, so... maybe it really is a kidnapping after all. “For now, I think we should stand by our promise and keep him safe and away from Don. There’s only two of us, I hardly doubt we could use him as a bargaining chip when Don could just wipe us out with one little finger,” Kodya looks around the forest clearing. A place that was once bustling in lively activity and familiar scents, now stood devoid of all life.

Although it isn’t much to look at now, it's still home.

He’s not ready to say goodbye just yet.

“There’s no need to leave. We can still build a life for ourselves here.”

_ Yeah,  _ Sylvia’s eyes burst with happiness.  _ Maybe once Gyrus wakes up, we can talk it over with him? Just um, leaving out the parts about Don’s mass murdering spree. _

Yawning hugely against his shoulder he can sense she’s just a moment away from passing out herself. Making himself slightly more comfortable against the tree trunk, he slips his own eyes closed and figures he’ll deal with the rest later.

* * *

“Huh. It really is attached.”

Something prods at his subconscious, urging him to wake back up. The distant murmur of a curious voice taps away at him. His ears flicker as smells flood his nose, the hum of the forest replaces the peaceful meandering of the dreamscape inside his head. 

A hand grabs a fistful of his tail fur and yanks, jolting him very much awake this time. 

Bolting upright, he hears Sylvie fall over as her sleeping spot is snatched away her, all the while Kodya yanks his tail away in a flustered rush of panic. “What the hell?!” he barks, eyes landing on the grabber. Of course it’s the damn kid, eyes overly bright and shining with barely concealed mirth. It appears that a certain someone has made a full recovery. From all around, Nephthys’ laughter fills the air. 

“Your friend told me it would be a sure fire way to wake you up,” he points up at the source of the giggles.

Oh,  _ of course _ , Nephthys would already be conspiring against him.

“Don’t just grab a wolf’s tail like that, kid, I could have taken your head off.”

“I don’t think you would have hurt me,” Gyrus sits back on his heels to confidently smile up at him. The sunlight pools all around his head and shoulders, making his body suit shine like the midnight galaxy. 

“Oh yeah?”

“Hmm, for one thing, I woke up still alive. If you really wanted to harm me, you would have already killed me back at my home, especially after everything that happened. I’m glad your friend is okay,” he adds softly, a question in his eyes as he spots Sylvia nervously peering at him from behind Kodya’s legs. Her ears prick at being addressed, and she shyly waves a hand at him. 

“Well this-” is not exactly how Kodya expected proper first introductions to have gone down. Gyrus is taking waking up in a new place  _ extremely _ well, all things considered. Noticing he struggles to finish his sentence, Gyrus decides to help him out. Standing up properly and sweeping his long hair back behind his shoulder, he addresses his step sister first.

“Could we start again? My name’s Gyrus, and I’m sorry that I hurt you back at the mansion,” he offers out a hand, something which Kodya recognises as a human form of greeting. He is more than sure Sylvia isn’t aware of how to return such a thing.

Curiously coming out from behind her step brother, Sylvia approaches the hand and sniffs at it. When Gyrus doesn’t react, she begins to sign.

_ It’s okay, I know you were just scared, so no need for apologies. I’m pretty tough, I’ve been through worse. My name’s Sylvia!  _ She reaches out with both hands to grab Gyrus’ upper arms, bringing her face in close and warmly pressing her nose against his in a formal werewolf greeting.

He’ll give the kid credit, he doesn’t make a fuss like any other being may have at the seemingly intimate gesture. 

Even so, he still glances over the top of her head, eyes asking for silent help from Kodya. Deciding to throw him a bone, Kodya crosses his arms. “My sister Sylvia is mute,” he starts with the obvious first. “And only speaks in sign. It’s something we both came up with and learnt so we could still communicate. She was just telling you not to apologise.”

Sylvia nods enthusiastically. 

“Mute?”

_ There was a fire,  _ she starts to explain, before realising her voice can’t reach him.

Kodya shifts uncomfortably, feeling a vague prickle under his fur at revealing something so private to an almost stranger.

Smiling in understanding, Gyrus turns back to Sylvia. “It’s okay, I’ll learn if you teach me how to sign.” Sylvia’s eyes pop open in amazement, suddenly lunging in for a hug.

_ Does that mean you’ll stay with us?! _

Kodya can hear her voice clearly ask with how frantically her tail starts to wag. 

“Sylvia didn’t grow up around humans either; she’s never seen a handshake before,” he explains a little more. “Werewolves bump noses as a form of greeting. To do it properly, you also breath in at the same time- it shows a unity between two beings.”

“I’ll know for next time.”

Kodya can’t help but raise an eyebrow. The language he uses keeps implying he is planning to stick around. 

The question hasn’t even been asked yet. 

During the explanation, Sylvia begins to tug on Gyrus’ hair with a question in her eyes. “Oh, my hair? It does that,” he laughs, unaware this makes absolutely no sense to anyone but Gyrus. 

“You don’t have much control over your powers do you kid?” 

It has been bothering Kodya for a while.

“Gyrus,” he automatically corrects him with his name.

“Vampire brat,” Kodya is also not one to be caught out.

Gyrus pouts instead. “And no, I suppose I don’t. There’s been no real need for me to use them either outside of simple tasks and… well, they can be pretty dangerous when I do,” he pulls a face, clearly remembering what his blood did to Sylvia.

Sylvia raises a fist.  _ I’m fine! _

“Your powers are only as dangerous as you will them to be,” Kodya points out, recounting something his father has once taught him. While he may not have radioactive blood, he still had fangs and claws and a will to use them for good or bad. “You just need a little practise.”

Gyrus smiles at him, and Kodya can already see this is going to be a problem for his heart. His smile is just way too radiant, completely unfitting for a creature of the night.

“Well, regardless. Sylvia is right, my hair does get in the way. It’s a pretty easy fix,” this time his body suit doesn’t react when his hand glows the same green from last night. Something unseen slices at the air and all of his hair suddenly cascades down his back and shoulders, leaving it just long enough to draw up into a short ponytail with an invisible tie. 

Sylvia immediately grabs Gyrus’ hand, flipping it over as if to find the source of power.  _ How did you do that?! _

“That was completely different from last night,” Kodya adds, startled at the much more passive way he’d handled himself. 

“Do you remember what I said?” Gyrus asks, allowing Sylvia to curiously poke at the powered down circuits on his hands. “For the most part, I’m only allowed to drink what Don synthetically makes. We call them heart beets. The blood concentration is significantly less than when it comes from the real source. We do it to moderate my power levels,” a hint of colour flushes into his cheeks. “It’s only when I have blood directly from a living mammal that I get such a heightened power surge like last night- and things usually get a bit out of control. The only positive to it, is it lets me unlock most of my powers.” 

While Kodya has never met a vampire with such strange quirks before, a lot of what Gyrus says still makes sense. Regardless of what vampire class Gyrus comes from, they all shared the same trait of needing blood for heightened powers. Anything less would leave them in a much more weakened state. 

“There’s something I still don’t understand,” Kodya interjects. “Why were you being kept in there?” 

Gyrus toes at the ground, eyes downcast. “That’s... a really good question. And something I honestly don’t know myself. One day I just… woke up inside the mansion. I have no memories before that, and really, it didn’t bother me much since being with Don alleviated any fears I had.”

“And you never thought to ask, or have any desire to just leave?”

Gyrus shakes his head. “I know it all must sound pretty odd. Until, well,  _ now _ , it never really occurred to me that the entire situation was, ah. Strange.”

Kodya can’t help but glance at Sylvia. To him, it sounds as if there had been more than just synthetic blood inside those heart beets keeping Gyrus so docile. From the way Gyrus describes himself and knowing Don, he was more than likely using the vampire for something. What that something is, Kodya couldn’t really say. 

“You’re here now, that’s all that matters,” Kodya shrugs, deciding there is little point getting into it further when Gyrus only has half the story.

“That does remind me; why exactly am I here?” he asks the question Kodya still hasn’t come up with a good excuse for. “Did you two kidnap me?”

Sylvia waves her hands around, a universal sign for denial.  _ We’re going to keep you safe! _

Wishing that Gyrus could better understand Sylvia, it’s up to Kodya to think on his paws. “Can’t you think of it more like… rescuing?” a bemused smile spreads across Gyrus’ face, immediately making him feel awkward. “You don’t  _ really _ want to go back to Don, do you? He was clearly keeping you trapped in there.”

“And what if I said I wanted to go back?”

Sylvia’s shoulders visibly sag. “Well… we wouldn’t stop you,” Kodya’s expression stays carefully neutral, although he can’t hide the disappointment in his voice. 

Suddenly, Gyrus laughs. A cheerful sound that hasn’t been heard in the clearing for so long now it makes both wolves stare in slight awe. 

“Stop looking so sad. I can tell you’re both good beings at heart and didn’t mean anything by it. I still don’t really get why you’d take me away, but hey, I’m here now and truth be told, it’s a lot nicer than being in that dusty old mansion. Don kept me safe for the most part, but,” it’s here he trails off, unsure of how to finish his thought. He peers upwards, through the willows leaves and up into the sunlight. It’s the warmest he’s felt in a very long time. “Now that I’m outside, maybe I can start learning a bit more to why I was even stuck there in the first place.” 

_ Gyrus! _ The young wolf’s tail almost flies off her backside as she crushes Gyrus into her upteempth hug of the day.  _ I promise we’ll love you lots and lots! _

Kodya clears his throat, thinking that it’s probably a good idea Gyrus doesn’t know sign language yet. 

“She’s happy to have you with us.”

“Oh, I can tell that much.” 

Grabbing his hand, Sylvia starts to drag Gyrus out of the riversides roots and further into the clearing, starting to gesture around wildly and fully intending to give him the grand tour of everything. 

“It’s been a long time since I’ve seen Sylvia that happy,” Nephthys remarks as they both watch them explore around the area. “Aren’t you going to go down and help translate?”

“He’ll be fine. I’ll teach him soon enough.”

All this social interaction is exhausting. 

Wondering if he can get away with another nap, those thoughts quickly vanish when, soon enough, Gyrus comes jogging back into view. Unable to feint sleep for very long with his back tucked against Nephthys’ trunk, he glances up into Gyrus’ beaming face. 

How does a vampire have so much  _ energy? _

“So. Kody, right?”

Kodya feels his face set ablaze at the unexpected nickname falling from his lips. Nephthys calling him that is bad enough, he _did not_ need this cheeky brat catching onto it too. It’s obvious who the culprit is. “Ko _dya-_ and do _not_ listen to anything that witch has to say to you,” he jabs his pointing finger upwards.

“That’s so cruel, Kody!” Nephthys wails in mock tears. A great sigh escapes her branches, a puff of morning dew scattering off her leaves. “I had to fill dear Gyrus in on all the details while you and Sylvia were asleep.” 

As quickly as colour had come to his face, it just as fast drains away. 

“And that would be?”

“Oh you know, this and that,” she says airily, and why must she always pout whenever he loses his temper at her?

He can hear Gyrus laughing at them both. 

“Kody has a nice ring to it; unless you felt like calling me by  _ my  _ name now?”

Oh so  _ that’s _ the game they’re playing is it.

The only thing Kodya really has over Gyrus is his height, although the vampire has already proven himself to be more than a little stubborn about not backing down from anything. Seeing that Kodya is not complying, Gyrus sighs rather dramatically before loudly calling down to Sylvia who’s tail starts to wag in delight. “Sorry Sylvia, Kody sai-” 

Kodya grabs his arm to cut him off, cheeks painted with an embarrassed tint. “Oy, ki—  _ Gyrus. _ ”

“Oh, hey,” his expression is so infuriatingly soft, Kodya releases his arm as if he’s been burnt. “That wasn’t so hard, now was it?”

Had he… really been acting that stand offish? 

Stammering out an awkward apology, Gyrus quickly cuts across him. “You’re fine. Now, come down here with us- Sylvia said she wants us all together,” mimicking her actions from before, Gyrus takes hold of his hand and tugs. The air squeezes out of his lungs in the same painful way as when Gyrus had first bit him. 


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope ya'll like lore.

The threat of Don knocking on their back door step gradually faded as more time passed by. Time was a nebulous concept inside the thick forest walls - aided further by beings who call themselves almost immortal, the wolves had no real idea of their earthly ages with how fast it all slipped them by - time can go as fast or as slow as one wanted it to; granted, if one bothered to look up and check the position of the sun or the moon. As such, their odd family unit fell into a comfortable routine as they got used to one another. 

For one thing, Gyrus’ curiosity was insatiable. 

To any other beings it would have been annoying. The questions, the head tilts, the unflinching pokes at their odd body parts. The last and _only_ time Kodya remembered his ears being yanked at was when a particularly unruly pup had caught him lying on his back and gone in for the attack. Gyrus had suffered the exact same treatment as the pup had - a swift clip around the head. For Kodya and Sylvia, who had been alone with only each other and a willow spirit for company for such a long stretch of time, Gyrus’ antics hardly bothered them; having a voice fill in the usual silence was a breath of fresh air.

The questions he had seem to never end.

Many of his questions were about Kodya and Sylvia themselves. Rightly so, he had never seen creatures like them before. With upper halves that looked entirely human save for their furry ears, their bottom halves were that of a wolf’s. Moulded into an unnatural shape, their digitigrade joints allowed for movement to mimic that of a human being’s. More than once Kodya had woken up to Gyrus curiously poking at the soles of his paws, as if touching them would give him the answers he sought. 

Apparently Don’s library didn’t contain books on monsters - ironically - so one day when Sylvie decides to thoughtlessly transform herself back into her natural werewolf state, Gyrus almost loses his mind entirely.

A snowy white wolf, only retaining her natural eye colour to indicate that it’s still her. Sylvia had wanted to hunt but instead finds herself trapped in Gyrus’ embrace as he coos over how cute she looks.

“I want to see what you look like,” he asks Kodya. All but demands it, really.

“I’m a lycanthrope- we don’t look as cute as my sister does.”

“A ly.. What?” he struggles to pronounce it correctly. 

Realising that the hunt will have to be put on hold until Gyrus has had his full of answers for the night, Kodya sits down next to them, softly illuminated by the fire’s glow. Sylvia stops struggling when she realises that parking herself on Gyrus’ lap for hugs is a much smarter option. “I know you’ve never been told the human version of this story before, but the werewolf legend got lost a very long time ago. The human way of storytelling is unfaithful, it’s all word and mouth and gets twisted along the way.” 

“Well, isn’t that what you’re doing right now?”

“You might be a vampire, but your culture is still human,” Kodya points out. Even that isn’t entirely correct. His culture is whatever nonsense Don has stuffed inside his head. “Traditionally, we communicate through howls and touch; every part of the story has a different tone that only wolves and other animals can hear and understand. Try as hard as you want, but I don’t think your ears are made to understand a wolf’s howl.”

Gyrus nods, to show his understanding.

“Do you know of the creation story of the realm? It’s better if I start from there,” he asks Gyrus, who’s answer is another questioning head tilt. “According to our elders, this realm was created by four elemental beings. One who belongs to the eastern rangers, to govern over the transforming lands and the fire’s deep within it. One who belongs in the sky, controlling the shift of the day and the night and all the changes to the weather. One out to sea and all the other bodies of water which grants life to all the forests and plants. And finally the most important one of all, is the one who governs over life and death itself - they decide and have control over every being’s time, extending and extinguishing it at their will - this includes the realm’s life as well.”

The crackle of the slowly dying fire fills the silence as Kodya takes a breath. He can see Gyrus hanging onto his every word, one hand gripped tightly in Sylvia’s shaggy coat. “Doesn’t that frighten you?”

“Not really,” Kodya admits. “Death is just another part of life. The way the elders would put it is once the realm’s life ends, it can simply start anew. And that includes all of us. Like one complete circle,” he swivels his finger around to emphasize his point. 

“So, what does all this have to do with werewolves?”

“Well. After the creation of the realm, the elementals wanted to share the lands they had created. That’s where we come in- although, we didn’t start off looking like this. The very first werewolf ancestor was a human being called Lycaon, and after angering the elementals, they cursed his blood line for as long as the realm stood. His wife gave birth to two werewolf pups; and since then, the cursed blood has been passed down every new generation.”

“Is that where the name lycanthrope comes from then?” Gyrus asks.

“Yeah. I guess you could call it the purest wolf form, although visually it looks like a monster. The elementals wanted to punish our ancestors after all. When two full blooded lycans mate, the likelihood of a lycan pup being produced is high - Sylvia is the result of mixed blood,” he tries to explain. Sylvia proudly sticks her nose up into the air.

Looking thoughtful, Gyrus takes an educated guess. “Your ancestors must have tried to get rid of the cursed blood by bringing in other genes - but I guess it wasn’t as simple as that.”

“That’s right. They thought if they bred with other beings the blood would die out eventually - but, well, being cursed by an elemental is no laughing matter. It just mutated into other forms. You know, there are also vampire breeds with mixed wolf blood in them too,” he adds thoughtfully. Although rare, occasionally they had passed by their packs territory back during more peaceful times.

This immediately catches Gyrus’ attention. His eyes grow impossible large as he eagerly leans forward. “Can you tell me more about them? I know you said human is largely my culture but I'd like to learn more about my other side too,” Kodya has seen how frustrated Gyrus can get, not really knowing his own identity well enough to act confident in his own skin.

“Hmm. It would be better if you could ask another vampire that,” the disappointment in Gyrus’ face is obvious. Although it clears up when Kodya continues. “But from my understanding, there are different ways to turn vampires. And even ways to half turn. When that happens they still can produce offspring naturally if they choose to. I don’t think you can,” Kodya says matter of factly, clearly remembering Gyrus’ lack of pulse which in turn meant all his other organs would be non functioning. Truly dead as a doornail. 

“Like I was planning on it,” Gyrus says self consciously. He rests his face against Sylvia’s fur. “I guess even my ancestors got curious then. Its weird to think about, small vampire and wolf hybrids running around somewhere out there. Hang on,” he frowns, glancing back up. “This is all a very round about way of getting out of showing me your werewolf form.”

Kodya had hoped the subject had been forgotten.

“I’m not avoiding it,” he huffs. “Lycans are different from hybrids like my sister. Asides from.. Visually looking grotesque, we have very little control over ourselves. It’s like truly becoming an animal. Being in a pack environment can put a stopper on most of the urges after a transformation, but if a lycan ever gets outcast, usually they rampage until sunrise. It’s caused a lot of grief with humans and other beings that get caught in the crossfire,” Kodya stops when he notices Gyrus’ expression. He looks troubled by Kodya’s words. “If you’re worried I’m going to transform and eat you..”

“Ah, no, it’s not that,” Gyrus waves a panicked hand. “I didn’t even consider that. I just. I didn’t realise how difficult it must be for you. I shouldn’t have brought it back up.”

Kodya flicks his ears. Gyrus is.. Concerned about _him?_

While there is a certain level of discrimination against his kind from human beings, being a lycan was never something he had felt was a heavy burden to bear. His pack had regarded it as a mark of honour, rather than view it as a curse, so instead he wore his full blood with a sense of pride. Thankfully, Kodya had never been put into a situation that would enable him to rage out of control, and perhaps that was what made him regard it a bit naively. “Well, that’s enough history for one day. Come on, if we waste any more time sitting around the fire, dawn will be here before we all know it.”

Steering the conversation back onto something routinely feels like the safest option to take.

* * *

There was only one den left in their territory, the hollow dug outs randomly scattered across the ground are the only evidence of those that came before them.

The den was just cosy enough to fit two fully grown wolves, scooped out below Nephthys’ roots and covered in a well worn nest of leaves, pelts and wolf fluff. Luckily for Gyrus he was of an average human size, who could fit snuggly between them both. 

While vampire’s didn’t technically need sleep, Sylvia had found it odd to leave one body out of the den while they slept during the day. A pack animal at heart, she liked the feeling of having all her family close by- including Gyrus.

Gyrus hadn’t exactly put up a fight, but at her suggestion he had certainly given the dug out entrance a strange look.

“You can say no,” Kodya had gently suggested. Having grown up with Sylvia, he knew what she was like and just how pushy she could get. “I know sleeping next to two wolves is probably… weird.”

If he was uncomfortable, Kodya would get it. It was something he and Sylvia would normally never think twice over, touch and a sense of belonging was just a part of their culture.

“I’ll think about it,” Gyrus reached a safe middle ground.

Mother nature had then decided to make the decision for Gyrus.

A fierce storm had taken hold of the forest one night, forcing them all to take shelter in the den and well into the next day - Nephthys’ magic keeping the rising river well away from flooding them out. Used to such storms passing over every so often, the wolves ignored it, but the loud sounds and tremors were all new to Gyrus.

Despite putting on a brave face, Kodya still recognised the wide eyed look of a frightened animal, and parked Gyrus firmly between himself and Sylvia to keep him safe.

Even with the racket going on outside, the wolves still managed to sleep through it all. Kodya was surprised to find that next morning Gyrus was stuck clinging to the back of his vest - the storm must have unnerved him into such a state that he was unwilling to let go.

After the storm had rolled by, Kodya then began noticing Gyrus would more often come into the den halfway during the day to curl up beside them - if he truly slept it was a mystery to them all - until a routine formed into it becoming an everyday thing.

As it stood, the wolf’s sleeping habits had to change.

While it had been just the two of them, it didn’t really matter that Sylvia had a habit of sprawling out everywhere- Kodya would usually curl up into a ball away from her- but now with Gyrus in the middle, well, the poor kid had woken up with a few bruised ribs after one or two twitchy kicks from Sylvia’s hind legs in the middle of the day. 

On instinct, Kodya had started to now roll over during his sleep, his hunched over posture opening up a little to cocoon around Gyrus instead- at least Sylvia’s flailing limbs would hit him instead. 

For the most part, Gyrus didn’t need sleep like the wolves did; in fact he had observed that wolves needed quite an unusual amount of sleep to keep up with their much larger body masses. The best he could achieve was allowing his mind to drift as he relaxed and recharged himself to the sound of their deep breathing. 

A much lighter sleeper than his sister, Kodya would often wake up whenever Gyrus would start to fidget. This time, he’s examining his hands. 

“Kid, _what_ are you doing?”

The fond endearment has stuck, much to Gyrus’ chagrin. Kodya is also far too sleepy to really put up a fight about it. 

“You have paw pads on your hands,” he points out the obvious. Not as prominent as the squishy black pads on the soles of his hind paws, the ones on his hands are more like fleshy bumps. For the most part, they’re there to make gripping things easier. 

Kodya yawns hugely, rubbing his face back down into the bed of leaves. He wishes Gyrus would learn to fake sleeping better. “Just a lycanthrope trait. Leave it alone.”

“Sylvia doesn't have them, does she? I’ve noticed you both have a few differences-”

His babbling string of thought gets cut off when Kodya circles his arms around Gyrus’ waist, hauling him up and over his chest and knocking him firmly into the other side of the den. Huffing loudly, Gyrus tries to blow a strand of stray green hair out of his eyes. 

His entire body language is telling Gyrus to shut up.

“ _Please_ go back to sleep. I have to hunt for you lot tonight.”

“Kodya,” his protest is muffled against the fur trim of Kodya’s vest. 

“If you’re quiet, I promise you can come along and I’ll tell you more about lycans and werewolves.”

Blissfully, Gyrus takes the bribe and Kodya gently snores against him for the next few hours. 

* * *

Letting Gyrus come along has clearly been a grave miscalculation on his part. 

Like an unruly pup he has a habit of being unable to keep still or quiet for very long. In fact, Kodya is sure a wolf pup would be damned quieter than his vampire companion. 

The last time he had taken Gyrus out hunting with him, his annoying powers had activated and the harsh green glow had scared off the one deer he’d been lucky enough to track down.

Kodya’s careful movements allow him to brush by the foliage with barely a rustle- Gyrus on the other hand, is not so elegant. While the muttered curses and tripping draw out an amused smile from Kodya; he really is going to drive off half the forest at this rate.

“Kid you have _got_ to learn to pick up your feet,” Kodya peers back over at him, snorting when he sees said foot wedged between a tree root. Gyrus yanks it free with a loud huff. 

“We don’t all have soft paws like some wolves do,” Gyrus snaps back, and it’s a funny little quirk he’s noticed from his time with the vampire. Whenever something doesn’t go right the first time, it frustrates him to no end. 

“They might be soft, but they’re also larger than yours so that’s no excuse. With your size you could be way quieter than me. Here,” standing beside Gyrus he lowers himself a little to tap at his toes. “Stand on the balls of your feet and actually _feel_ the ground before you move. You’re not some kind of bunny rabbit madly running around everywhere- you’re meant to be stealthy.” 

Feeling Gyrus’ eyes on his back, Kodya demonstrates by moving a few paces forward. Due to his leg structure, he is always positioned on the very tips of his pads, like a human walking on tiptoes. And while those pads on his paws are arguably made for feeling what’s around him with optimal ease, he still stands by his initial words. 

“Stealthy like a wolf, huh?”

“That’s what you are now, kid, better get used to it,” he shoots over his shoulder. 

This time, Gyrus doesn’t stumble. 

Looking a lot brighter, he grins up at his companion. “Okay so, _now_ will you answer my questions?”

“I _just_ gave you a one on one demonstration to how wolf paws work. Maybe after we catch something I’ll tell you something else.”

“Oh come on, do you always have to be so difficult?”

“Yes.”

He can’t help but laugh at the disgruntled expression Gyrus has. Leaving the pouting vampire behind, he almost catches himself turning around to tell him to hurry up- when a familiar whooshing sound slices right above his ears. 

He’s gotten accustomed to the strange energy hum attributed to most of Gyrus’ powers. While primarily used for mending and healing, he could also bend those powers into something more destructive whenever he wished.

Kodya turns to glare; Gyrus’ face is very much _not_ innocent.

“What’s the matter Kody, I thought you were meant to be hunting?”

Something about Gyrus’ tonal shift whenever he uses that infuriating nickname _really_ gets him going. A wicked smirk breaks across Kodya’s face. “I am,” he growls, before his powerful hind legs push himself towards Gyrus in one swift motion. In the nick of time the young vampire manages to launch himself backwards; out of harm's way. A shower of dirt and leaves kicks up around Kodya’s outstretched claws. 

“Hey, you could have taken my legs off there,” his voice is light and teasing, eyes shining. He doesn’t believe a word of it.

Kodya knows from experience that Gyrus’ skin is made out of tougher stuff than any human’s. He isn’t afraid to knock him around if push came to shove. 

“That’ll be the least of your concerns in a second,” Kodya challenges back, his claws meeting a tree trunk this time as Gyrus _just_ dances out of his reach. He must have been training with Sylvia to get this fast. 

Completely unafraid, Gyrus whirls about with a carefree laugh and takes off, the soles of his black bound feet glowing with unnatural light. 

Hunting for food leaves his head, as his mind focuses on a much more entertaining piece of prey to try and catch. 

Gyrus is ridiculously fast, and soon Kodya loses sight of his figure weaving in and out of the trees and has to rely on his nose to track him down. Originally, he had thought all vampires were impossible to scent. Now after spending a few moon cycles with Gyrus, he can easily recognise his smell which is uniquely his own. 

The vampire may have fast reflexes, but it’s nothing on a silent predator honing in on its prey.

Through the dense white tree trunks, Kodya recognises this part of their territory to have a lake front a few metres ahead. From Gyrus’ movements, he takes a guess that he would have stopped somewhere close by, likely thinking he’s given the wolf the slip. 

Sure enough, he spots his glowing figure hovering around the lakes edge, curiosity of spotting such a large stretch of water getting the better of him.

Sneaking up on him is easy enough; he was specially designed for such attacks, especially when a vampire's nose and ears were so much duller than an animal’s. Without a sound he barrels right into Gyrus’ unprotected legs and with a very undignified yelp, he tumbles right over with the laughing wolf. 

With a wheeze Gyrus lands on his back, blowing whatever air is trapped out of his dead lungs. The perks of not needing to catch his breath back, he starts to laugh again, oblivious to the over one hundred kilos of wolf braced above him. 

“Gotcha,” feeling way to smug over his flawless take down, his tail starts to wag on it’s own accord. “Did you really think you were gonna out fox me?”

“Oh. We aren’t finished yet,” Gyrus says, the picture of innocence as he places both of his hands palm up against Kodya’s chest. Realising too late he should have pinned his hands too, Kodya only sees a blinding flash of light as Gyrus shoves the wolf a foot into the air and rolls out from under him. 

Landing on his paws, Kodya wearily crouches. “You’re getting better,” he compliments, as he begins to move to the right. Gyrus moves in the opposite direction. The first time Gyrus had asked to spar with Kodya, the kid had been as useless as a mouse.

“I had some good teachers.”

“Funny, I don’t remember teaching you to be a little brat.”

Gyrus smiles. “I still haven’t managed to flip you- and I’m feeling pretty lucky today.”

No more running away it seems.

In a crackle of energy, Gyrus flits upwards, momentarily stunning Kodya before Gyrus whacks the back of his head with the back of one elbow. “Where are you looking?” It takes significantly more force to stun a werewolf, so it's with ease that Kodya shoots out one hand to grab hold of Gyrus’ foot and pull him back down. The vampire lands with a grunt, fangs clacking together painfully.

“At you,” he says truthfully

Although Gyrus is at a significant disadvantage when it comes to hand to hand combat against a beast that could easily crush his skull in half, his agility is the only boon he has. While still fast himself, the weight of Kodya’s lower half is still a handicap in close up fights; he’s better suited for jumping or sprinting.

Watching the young vampire flit in front of him strains his eyes- the hum of his electrified energy gives the illusion he’s seeing double. Kodya manages to get in a blow to Gyrus’ stomach before remembering you couldn’t exactly wind a vampire. He receives a swift knee jab to his jaw for his mistake. “You still haven’t managed to flip me,” he goes for a jeer instead. 

“Working on it.”

He sees the frustration in Gyrus’ face.

They could do this dance all night long if Kodya allowed it. It has been a very long time since he’s had a proper sparring partner; while Sylvia is always up for a fight, it isn't quite the same when you know a person’s fighting style inside out.

Without warning, something whistles by Kodya’s head and he instinctively bristles at the foreign intrusion. He has been so focused on Gyrus that he hasn’t paid a second glance to his wider surroundings. 

“Look out!” Gyrus gets his wish of knocking Kodya onto his back, although it is to save them both from being skewered by another projectile. “Hey!” He quickly stands back up and instead positions himself protectively before Kodya. Both of his hands raise in a threatening gesture towards the owner of the spear-like weapons.

“Ah, hang on,” their attacker hesitantly drops the third spear he was about to throw. Peering through Gyrus’ legs, Kodya recognises the massive form of someone from the centaur clan. With a quiver full of deadly looking spears strapped to his chest and hanging off his back, he raises his hands palms outwards. “I thought you were attacking my friend there.”

“Anan?”

“You two know each other?” Gyrus glances over his shoulder as Kodya scrambles to his paws.

“Yeah, he and his herd used to live in the fields down from our forest. I didn’t realise you’d come back,” he adds, approaching his old friend with a welcoming smile on his face. Most of his herd had escaped during the forest fire.

“Only passing through I’m afraid. I've come down from the mountains to pass on a message that the fire nymphs Queen has been slain.”

Kodya’s smile immediately vanishes, feeling a cold grip of panic settle inside his stomach. This could not mean anything good.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote this chapter months before Amelia's big reveal, and subsequently still feel bad about offing her while I upload this.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have no excuse asides from 2020 kicked my ass.

_ Sylvia, I think it’s about time we consider moving on. _

It’s a hard topic to bring up, especially when he knows how much being here means to her. Sylvia puts down the flat stone that she has been using to rub at the stains that mark one of her tops. The last rays of the evening sun caress the curve of her cheek, the water’s reflections of the river bed she sits beside dim as the light slips behind the eastern rangers.

_ You’re that worried about what Anan said? _

_ I’m worried that Don hasn’t come after him. _

She sighs, turning away slightly.  _ I wish we could just leave it at that. _

“I know,” he agrees, finally speaking up. If he could, he would also carry on ignorantly believing that was that. That Don would leave them alone and never try to seek out what had been taken from him. The death of Tori’s Queen is clearly meant to be a direct message to them. A barely concealed threat.

_ Will you tell Gyrus? _

“I don’t know what to say to him,” he admits with a grimace. After all this time, they still hadn’t come clean in regards to his situation. Sylvia frowns.

_ Well he’s not about to come with us without knowing why. _

“I know, I know. Just. Let me talk to him, I’ll think of something.”

Sylvia raised one eyebrow but doesn’t sign any further.

Leaving her to get on with her washing, Kodya ventures out from the safety of their camp and slips into the growing darkness of the forest beyond. This is always his favourite part of the day. Where the moon is just starting to peek out from behind the clouds and the warmth of the sun is replaced by the fresh chill of the crisp night air. 

Lately, Kodya has begun to notice how often Gyrus will set out to explore the forest by himself. His new found independence is refreshing, if not a bit worrisome at times. While he is certain Gyrus could have gone back to Don by now if he truly wished for it, it still doesn't settle the unease he feels in his heart.

It’s easy enough to track Gyrus down. Kodya is so accustomed to his unique scent by now, he could have found the vampire with both eyes shut.

Finding him in one of his preferred spots, atop a short grassy rise which gives a breathtaking view of the land all around them. It’s nestled in one of the man made forest clearings they have littered about their territory. Now that that sun has fully set for the night, the twinkling of the human village from far below and the natural shimmer of the stars and moon above are the only light sources for miles around.

“There you ar-”

Gyrus makes a shushing sound and immediately yanks him down into the grass. Kodya snorts as blades of grass tickle at his nose- Gyrus puts a finger warningly against his lips. He shoots him a quick, bemused look, trying his best to ignore the way the strange fabric of Gyrus’ hand feels to the touch.

Doing his best to stay quiet, he asks in barely a whispered breath. “What are you doing?”

“Look down there.”

Following his gesturing hand, Kodya peeks his nose out to look down the grassy slope. There, bathed in the moonlight, are the ethereal forms of what his pack commonly refers to as moon rabbits. Unsure if they are the spirits of those passed on, or something else entirely, their encoporal forms leap and bound over the grass without a care in the world. Puffs of white mist cover each square inch they touch.

Breaking the mood somewhat, Kodya’s stomach gives an instinctive growl upon seeing them.

“Oh my gods, seriously Kodya?”

Gyrus can’t help but throw his head back and burst out laughing. The bright sound startles the rabbits, and they leap off into the mist in a blind panic. Gyrus leans against his shoulder, trying to stifle the sound with a hand.

It’s impossible to stay grumpy with Gyrus when Kodya can’t deny that his laughter is one of his favourite sounds to hear.

“Oi,” Kodya rumbles good naturedly, feeling his cheeks glow bright red. “It’s not like I  _ actually _ would have eaten them. They’re just ghosts after all.”

Now that the moment has passed, Gyrus manages to catch his breath once more. “Oh that was a shame, I wanted to show them to you,” he hums in disappointment and without much thought, links one arm through Kodya’s in a loose hug. 

It’s growing harder to ignore the way Gyrus touches him these days.

Feeling like a hypocrite for having first initiated them himself, more along the lines of,  _ it’s just a wolf thing,  _ then simply over thinking any more deeply into it; it becomes painfully obvious that Sylvia’s first statement of wanting to become family isn’t really how he looks at Gyrus lately. 

“What are you doing out here?” Kodya does his best to push his thoughts aside.

“Just thinking about some things. Sometimes it's a hard thing to do when you have two wolves snoring in your shared den space,” he jokes, and Kodya shoves at the side of his face with his nose.

“You are more than welcome to dig your own den elsewhere.”

Gyrus squeezes his arm in a lonely kind of way. As Kodya peers suspiciously into Gyrus’ face, he smiles gently in return. “Don’t be silly,” he breaths.

Kodya feels a painful ache inside his chest. “You’re not… thinking about leaving are you?” The vampire’s shocked expression somewhat reassures him.

“What? Where on earth did that come from?”

“I don’t know, I just. Overthink a lot. And that normally leads back to thinking about what if you wanted to return back to Don.”

Gyrus glances away, looking out to the land outstretched before them. Far in the distance, is the peaceful glow of the human village, deep within their gully. “Sometimes I think about it. Not necessarily about leaving, but about Don. I know you and Sylvia haven't talked much about him, or why exactly you were in our mansion- but I do understand there is a lot more to him than I was led to believe.”

“Would you like to know?” 

He can’t imagine the type of expression he must be making.

“Only if you feel that it’s worth telling.”

Carefully, Kodya eases himself out of Gyrus’ grip, instead turning his body to speak with him more directly. He can feel his tail twitch nervously behind him, pulse overly loud even to his own ears. “A very long time ago, before I was even born, the werewolves had a pact between the humans. We swore to live on peaceful terms, with some conditions here and there. Unfortunately, there came the day where the treaty was broken. Don was the one who broke our treaty, and also set fire to our forest.”

There is no grand lead up, just the cold truth.

Kodya sees Gyrus’ shoulders visibly sag under the weight of his words.

“Kodya I- I didn’t know,” he starts, eyes big and reflective of all the hurt Kodya lives out each day.

Although somehow, admitting this outloud isn’t as painful as he expected it to be. The tightness that had been building inside his chest during his explanation eases slightly. In some ways, it’s almost a relief. 

“It happened before your time. Of course you wouldn’t,” Kodya says, and is surprised when Gyrus reaches out to gently grasp his hands in his.

“Am I a reminder of what happened?” he almost sounds hurt, as if afraid Kodya is about to reject him. He can see why. With being so close to Don, it was a natural assumption to make.

“You’re the only good thing to come out of all this,” and before he can lose his nerve entirely he shakes his hands free to instead gather Gyrus up into a tight embrace. “When Sylvia and I saw you in Don’s fortress, all we could think of is how that man was about to ruin another being's life. And we couldn’t just leave you behind.”

The relief he feels as Gyrus clutches back is almost tangible. 

“I don’t… really remember a lot of what happened back then. The more time I’m away from Don, the more it feels like I was experiencing a strange dream than actual reality.”

Kodya does not want to make assumptions, but he starts to suspect there was more than just blood mixed in with those heart beats to keep Gyrus sedated and under Don’s watchful eye.

“I’m sorry if this is a lot,” Kodya apologies as he pulls away. Firmly, Gyrus grabs hold of his back to stop him completely separating. 

“I’m not going anywhere,” he assures Kodya, expression painfully soft. Kodya leans down to tuck his face securely into his neck, breathing in his calming scent. That promise is more than enough to still his trembling heart. 

* * *

Gyrus gradually begins to roam more and more. Sometimes, the wolves won’t see him for an entire night before he comes home with the dawn sun against his back. Naturally, Sylvia can’t help but ask if Kodya has said something to upset him. As far as he is aware of… no.

The last serious conversation they had had was over Don, and that night Gyrus hadn’t given any sign that learning the truth had hurt him to that degree.

The mixed signals he receives of Gyrus never being around camp, but will still curl up against his back during the day is completely baffling to him.

_ Well whatever it is, fix it _ .

Sylvia had told him, which finds Kodya once again roaming over the forest to try and find him. Not in his usual spot of up on the hill top, the sound of a scuffle deep in the forest’s undergrowth immediately draws his ears and attention. A loud squeaking of a frightened mouse trying to get away.

Only a few strides away and around the ghostly white trunks of some trees is Gyrus. Sprawled rather inelegantly on the ground, hands empty.

“Gyrus?”

He startles with a jump. “K-kodya!” Looking as though he’s been caught in the act of stealing something, the vampire scrambles up onto his knees. Kodya can’t help but narrow his eyes. Gyrus’ usually bright violet eyes are now sunken in, skin tinted an unpleasant shade. Gyrus has always had a pale face, white like marble against the stark contrast of his black bodysuit. Sometimes a little bit of colour will flush here and there if he’s excited or embarrassed; usually more prominent when he’s had a fresh supply of animal blood. As Gyrus tries to describe it as, he’s not exactly dead, just, slowed down. 

Now there is a sickly green hue splotched across his cheeks.

“You don’t look so good.”

“I’m fine!”

There is an odd, fake smile fixed firmly in place.

With a sigh, Kodya sits down next to him, sweeping his tail around his ankles. 

“You’re not fine,” Kodya growls, and for the first time, Gyrus can’t meet his gaze. “Hey, you know you can tell me anything, right? What’s this all about anyway, we haven’t seen you around camp in days now. What were you doing out here?”

His smile slips slightly. Gyrus pulls his legs up to his chin, resting it down onto his knees as he ponders the trees before them. “I’ve been trying to hunt by myself for awhile now,” he admits, rubbing the bridge of his nose in a self conscious gesture.

Kodya is a little surprised to hear this, although partially relieved this isn’t related to their conversation over Don.

As his hand moves, Kodya subconsciously reaches for it, turning Gyrus’ hand palm upwards. There are dirt stains around his fingertips and where his nails would be, scuff marks evident but not damaging enough to break the material. Kodya has never actually seen Gyrus take off his suit- it’s more a less a part of his body.

“I thought so. I could smell dirt on you every time you came into the den.”

“Sorry,” to his surprise Gyrus quickly withdraws his hand, nervously tucking it against his chest. 

“You don’t need to apologise.”

“No, I do. You’ve both been so kind to go out of your way to try to give me food- and I’m fully aware of the situation in the forest. But, the blood is bad Kodya,” at last he glances across at him, trying to hide most of his face behind his fringe. When he sees Kodya doesn’t react aggressively, he continues in a hurry. “I didn’t notice it myself since the symptoms were slow to show. Also, well, I’ve never fed off dead animals before now, so it wasn’t something I was even aware of. If I could drink from something alive, I think it would be fine, but I’ve gotten so weak I can’t even catch a mouse by myself.”

Kodya’s ears give a small flick of concern, deciding against trying to comfort him physically out of fear of rejection again.

“You’re being far too hard on yourself,” Kodya tries another way to reassure him, glancing down at the ground. “Gyrus, I’m not mad at you, wasted food doesn’t concern me. Your wellbeing does,” he can feel Gyrus’ intense gaze settle on the side of his head. Feeling far too self conscious to look at him now, Kodya instead carries on. “Not everyone expects you to know everything about yourself. Sylvia and I were born into our pack, everything comes naturally and instinctively. I mean.. sure. We’re always learning more about ourselves, but when it comes to being a wolf, we get it. It’s genetic. For you, you were once human, you know human cultures and their way of life. Understanding yourself as a vampire.. is hard. Especially when you lack a sire. Do you even know when you were turned?” Feeling like he’s back in safer territory, he looks to see his answer. Gyrus shakes his head. “Exactly. It’s likely you have more human years over your second life.”

He carefully watches Gyrus’ expression. His words don’t appear to have upset him, instead, his eyes set pensively. 

Before their conversation can continue, the unmistakable crunch of foot steps makes Kodya tense all over. Animals, either prey or predator, have an instinctual habit of picking up their feet for near silent walking. Whatever is stomping around, is no doubt a human being. Silencing Gyrus with a hiss, Kodya ushers him down into the thick coverage of lower growing foliage.

Even without the moon shining directly upon them, Kodya’s eyes can still pick out every slight flicker of movement from beyond the shrubbery. 

“What is it?” Gyrus does his best to whisper, but Kodya still covers up his mouth with a hand. The emptiness against his palm is a feeling he can’t get used to- Gyrus having no need to breath out. Thankfully, he takes the hint and stays quiet.

Swiveling his ears this way and that, Kodya finally locates the trespassers. Only a few metres ahead of them, the trees and leaves swallowing up any sign of visual life. They appear to be moving away from them.

“Stay close behind me,” he tells Gyrus, and carefully stands up from their hiding place.

“What do you plan on doing?”

“I thought they’d make a good midnight snack for you,” Kodya only half jokes. He doesn’t miss the frown Gyrus sends his way. “I’m just going to scare them off,” he reassures him. “They aren’t allowed on our territory any longer- and they’re lucky that’s the least I do to them after everything they put us through.” 

There is something about the way Gyrus looks at him that makes Kodya hesitate. Usually, he wouldn’t think twice over killing some human- no matter how many years pass by, the raw edge of their betrayal still hurts to this very day. 

It’s silly, but being around Gyrus makes him second guess many things.

As quietly as they can, they creep through the dense tree trunks, the leaves and branches barely making as sound as they brush them by. The heavy stomps of the human’s shoes thrum loudly inside Kodya’s ears, until he can at last make out individual words here and there. Mostly complaints about the cold.

Picking out the best vantage point, a split between two stark white tree trunks, they both crouch in the roots as the human beings innocently walk by on the other side. 

“This is ridiculous. Everything looks the same around here. I swear we’ve passed by that same tree stump at least a dozen times now,” one of the men loudly complains to his companion. Both men are well dressed to fight off the frigid night air, and as Kodya carefully pokes his nose from around the tree trunk he spots what appears to be hunting rifles securely strapped onto the men’s backs. If it is one thing Kodya truly hates, it’s guns. 

“Orders are orders. That vampire brat could be just about anywhere.” 

At this, Kodya glances back at Gyrus. There’s only one vampire brat he knows, and judging by Gyrus’ expression, he’s thinking the same thing.

One of the men grunt. “Ugh. Why does Don even want that thing back? It seriously used to creep me out. It just sat there in that box Don made without moving, day after day. I didn’t even think it was alive until it escaped. Couldn’t Don just drain it of all its energy and be done with it.”

“You wanna tell that to Don? Be my guest.”

Without meaning to, Kodya’s claws extend and break the bark his hand grips around. The noise isn’t loud enough to notify dull human ears, but Gyrus immediately yanks him back down. “ _ Don’t _ do anything stupid,” Gyrus warns him. He looks… deeply unsettled at the human’s words. As if they were describing a viewpoint which went completely against his own memories. “Kodya!”

Ignoring Gyrus’ hushed pleas, Kodya stands back up.

There was no way he was about to let two of Don’s lackeys walk out of this forest alive.

Knowing that Gyrus is far too weak to put up a fight, Kodya leaves him behind and silently pads out from behind the trunk, spotting the humans just a few feet ahead. His odds against two of them aren’t great, so instead he bends down to scoop up a fallen piece of tree debris. Throwing it past the human’s heads, it falls off into the darkness, hitting a few branches on it’s descent. 

The noise is enough to make them both pause, one of them indicating to the other he’ll make sure the path ahead is clear.

As his companion is left alone for the briefest of moments, Kodya surges forward and the human’s life ends in the second it takes to snap his neck in half. Lowering the body down as quietly as he can, Kodya quickly follows after the second human who has managed to put some distance between them.

Still managing to stomp around despite being in very real danger, the human swings a flimsy beam of light around the forest’s horizon line- trying to work out where the noises had come from.

Wasting no time, Kodya pounces again. This time, he puts one arm around the man’s throat, the other disabling his dominant hand in case he tries going for his weapon.

“If you value your life, you have two seconds to tell me where Don is,” Kodya threatens, at least having enough sense left to get some mileage out of the human before killing him.

Rather than complying, a sharp whistle comes from his lips. Kodya’s ears press flat against his skull, the shrillness of the sound making them ring. An answering call, far too close for Kodya’s liking, comes somewhere from behind.

Unbelievable. Kodya presses down on the human’s windpipe, the whistle immediately choking off. “Last chance to tell me.”

The human shakes, not out of fear, but silent laughter. Kodya realises the human has no reason to out Don; not even using his own life as a bargaining chip. Snapping the last breath out of the man, Kodya shoves the body away, turning tail and running towards where the whistling had come from.

It sounds far too close to where he’d left Gyrus behind.

As he stumbles back onto the trail he’d come down, Kodya stops at once. The body he’d left crumpled against the bushes has vanished. That couldn’t be right, he’d barely been gone a few minutes. Voices from up ahead stop any further train of thought. Kodya’s stomach lurches down into his paws when he hears the unmistakable voice of Gyrus mixed in with the humans.

Or rather not exactly Gyrus’ voice...something more like an inhumane growling.

It takes so much will power to fight the insane urge to immediately run out to Gyrus’ side. His wolf’s blood surges angrily at the mere thought of anything happening to him. But none of that will do them any good if Kodya gets shot dead on the spot. Kodya forces himself to take it slow, vanishing back into the darkness of the forest to find the best vantage spot. 

Kodya isn’t familiar with the strange weapon’s the human’s have, and they use something that looks heavier than rope to tie Gyrus’ hands behind his back, holding his face down into the dirt with the end of what looks like a club. They clearly see no need for more force, given his already fraile disposition. Drained of his powers or not, Gyrus still viciously hisses up at them, eyes wide and clearly trying to call forth any drops of energy that still might remain inside him.

There are at least six fully armed humans, and Kodya doesn’t like his chances.

Disparagingly, a seventh comes out from the depth of the forest to join the group. Kodya squints, realising he knows this one. The body he’d left on the side of the trail is  _ somehow _ up and reanimated. Head sitting slightly crooked on his shoulders.

“What the hell happened to you?”

“Ran into some trouble. Thank god Don made enough energy shots before we came out here. I probably would actually be dead if I hadn’t taken one.”

“Well, with our battery back we won’t need to worry about that anymore.”

“I don’t remember it being this lively,” one of the hunters comments, using the back end of his rifle to poke at Gyrus’ head. Gyrus bites, fangs catching at nothing but thin air as the men laugh.

“Don’t antagonise it. Once we drain it of all the excess blood it’s consumed it’ll go right back to being a nice obedient energy slave.”

Something appears to snap inside Gyrus upon hearing those words. “I don’t belong to anyone!” he roars, pushing up against the club and plunging his fangs down into the nearest man’s thigh. Blood immediately gushes everywhere. The men erupt into panicked shouting, and Kodya can finally use this chance to weaken them further.

Before Kodya can grab the nearest human from his hiding spot, one of the hunters raises his club, bringing it down hard on the back of Gyrus’ neck. A mere human being would have been immediately crippled by such a hit. Even with his strength, the blow is still severe enough to dislodge Gyrus from the leg he’s been doing his best to maul off.

Seeing the attack flips all rational thought out of Kodya’s mind. 

Without meaning to, his blood boils over, his lycanthrope instincts taking control instead. Even without the guidance of the full moon, his raw emotional response is enough to trigger his transformation prematurely. Unlike Sylvia’s cute, canine appearance, Kodya’s is much more primal, more monster than any domesticated animal humans would be familiar with. 

“ _ Wolf! _ ”

No time for subtly now.

With a warning growl, the humans get enough time to fire off one round into Kodya’s shoulder before he lunges. As if handling butter, the human’s flesh easily bends as his claws meet them, frantic screaming cut off as his jaws snap their windpipes clean in half. More bullets sink into Kodya’s side, the pain hardly registering as he slams one of the hunters head first into a tree trunk.

The very tiny, still Kodya part of his mind reminds the lycanthrope to remove their heads from their bodies. If Don is somehow pumping them full of borrowed immortality, he is sure decapitation is one way to fix that.

Before he realises it, the screaming has stopped. A deadly silence replaces it, tiny splashes of blood rolling off leaves and onto the ground is only sound to punctuate it. Bits of human have caught unpleasantly on his claws and fangs, the ripped apart remains of once moving bodies are thrown around everywhere like marionettes. 

From beneath one of the broken human bodies, something stirs. The lycanthrope snaps his eyes to the movement, lips curling up in a warning snarl. 

“Kodya.”

The voice.. Is dull. As if speaking through muddied water. The lycanthrope doesn’t know those words, head tilting as a human looking creature pushes its way out from being trapped under the bloodied bodies. He eyes up the odd tufted of green on its head, stalking over to shove his snout against it to sniff.

It looks like a human, but smells nothing like one.

These simple facts allow the lycanthropes fur to lie back down flat, aggression slowly easing out of his posture.

“Kodya, it’s alright now.”

He supposes it must be.

A warm green glow fills his vision, and very slowly his bones begin to reform into something much more familiar. He feels something hard pop out of his shoulder, thigh and sides, realising the bullets he’s been struck with have fallen out. Once back in his more human looking form, pain immediately hits all those areas. 

“Oh thank the Gods you’re okay,” Gyrus says with such palpable relief Kodya swears he can see tears form in his eyes. Wobbling unsteadily on his paws, Gyrus grabs Kodya in a hug, half to keep him standing upright, the other half to make sure he’s really there.

“Wha.. why are you worrying about me?”

“You just got shot five times in front of me!” Gyrus shouts, looking like he wishes to shake some sense into him if he wasn’t bleeding out in multiple places. “I thought you were going to die.”

_ That makes two of us,  _ Kodya thinks, feeling far too tired to express his own concerns. He rests his cheek ontop of Gyrus’ head, thinking if he fell asleep now, he would be entirely okay with that.

“Here,” as gently as he can, Gyrus guides him down so he can rest on the ground, away from the worst of the carnage. “I’ll try to fix you up as best I can.”

Realising Gyrus must have taken some of the blood from the leg he’d bitten, Kodya stays quiet as Gyrus sets to work on mending the worst of his injuries. A little more energy comes back to him as he bullet holes close up and the flow of blood stops. “I thought I was going to lose you,” Kodya admits quietly, once the green light fades from Gyrus’ hands.

He still can feel that exact moment of terror upon realising it.

“That’s not an excuse to entirely lose your head in the process,” Gyrus angrily sighs. Although he sounds reprimanding, Kodya can still see the softness in Gyrus’ eyes. Kodya tries to sit up, but is met with both of Gyrus’ hands. “Enough, please just rest.”

Although Gyrus has done his best to patch the worst of his injuries up, Kodya’s lack of strength is enough indication his healing abilities are still running on empty. Doing as he’s told for now, Kodya lays his head back down, eyes unwillingly resting on the bodies a few feet away. His memory is always fuzzy whenever he transforms, but the blood and bits of human hair caught under his claws is enough to tell him he was largely, if not entirely, responsible for this.

He can see the hit of adrenaline fading fast from Gyrus, his eyes unmistakably looking out at the rivers of blood. His face can’t possibly get any paler, and the expression he makes is one of wanting to be sick.

Killing humans isn’t a moral debate he has within himself; he mostly feels a sense of guilt for having put Gyrus through it.

“I’m sorry you had to see that,” Kodya finally has the courage to say. “I didn’t mean to.. Well.. lose it.”

At last, Gyrus pulls his eyes off the crushed skull of the man lying a foot away from them. Thankfully, it appears he won’t be throwing up; maybe he physically can’t. “I’m not scared of you, if that’s what you’re worried about. I’ve always known what you are; to me, you’re just Kodya. No matter what you look like,” Gyrus places a hand atop his head in a soothing gesture. “And while I don’t agree with killing, I also wasn’t about to get out of that situation without some kind of force.”

Kodya hesitates before asking. “Gyrus, is what they were saying true?”

“I don’t know. I don’t really want to think about it.”

Gyrus removes his hand, and Kodya tries hard not to show the disappointment on his face.

“I’d like to head back, staying here makes me feel too uneasy,” Kodya says instead, and this time he won’t be taking no for an answer. 

Feeling incredibly woosy on his paws, Gyrus supports him under one arm, and they slowly make their way back to camp in relative silence. Kodya can’t imagine what must be racing through Gyrus’ mind. If he really had been used as some kind of lab rat that would certainly make sense to why Don had even wanted him in the first place.

To him, it doesn’t seem very far fetched that using a vampire's energy could also grant temporary immortality to others. That was essentially what made a vampire so unique in the first place. While it may have been simpler to just turn his human army into full blooded vampires, their species also had a wide number of limitations.

So Don had simply.. Taken the best part of that.

Human beings and their desire for power through whatever means necessary certainly were terrifying. 

The quick sound of Sylvia’s pawsteps met them before they even made it back to camp. The heavy smell of blood alerting her to their arrival. Far too panic stricken to remember to sign, she begins to frantically pat down both Kodya and Gyrus, trying to find where the blood is coming from.

“It’s not ours. Well, mostly,” Kodya tries to reassure her. “We ran into some humans.”

Her mouth opens in horror. Taking hold of her brother’s hand, she pulls them urgently onwards. Explaining as they walk, Sylvia starts shaking her head the more they talk, tail stuck out and poofed out in fear.

“What’s going on? You’re both covered in blood!” Nephthys disembodied voice gasps as soon as they come into view of her tree.

_ We have to leave,  _ Sylvia says at once, finally regaining enough composure to start signing again.

“We can’t leave with Kodya still injured,” Gyrus points out, as the wolf in question gratefully sinks down among Nephthys’ roots.

_ There will be more of them coming. You don’t know what humans are like, Gyrus. _

“Surely we can wait just a few extra days. None of them were left alive, so we won’t have to worry about Don finding out right away.”

Sylvia begins to nervously ring her hands together.

“Sylvia, give me until dawn. I’ll be up and walking by then,” Kodya’s tired voice floats out. As much as he agrees that he really needs rest, the danger of more human’s coming is far too great.

“Kodya-”

“I hate to interrupt but, well, Gyrus is right,” Nephthys frets. “Now that I’ve had a look, you were hit by silver bullets. At a guess, Don might have suspected there were still some survivors and armed his men appropriately. While Gyrus has done a good job stopping the external injuries, silver is incredibly harmful to any werewolf and it will take your body a while to naturally recover from it. Both Gyrus and I's healing abilities still have limits.”

The colour drains from Sylvia’s face, before she angrily shakes her head. _ I’ll just carry him, _ she argues back.

“Would you both be  _ sensible _ about this?” Gyrus can feel his patience wearing out. “Don’t get me wrong, I agree that we need to leave as soon as possible. But what good will it do if Kodya reopens his wounds and forces us to stop in an even more disadvantaged place? And Sylvia will just exhaust herself if you carry him the entire way- wherever that may be.”

_ Don’t underestimate me,  _ she squares up against Gyrus, lips lifting in a threatening growl. Gyrus takes an uncertain step away, having never seen the usually carefree wolf lose her temper like this before.  _ A wolf can go days without food or drink- I have enough strength to carry my brother anywhere if it means to save our lives. _

“I-I didn’t mean-”

“Enough! Both of you. Please stop bickering, it’s going to get us nowhere,” using the support of Nephthys’ branches to stand, Kodya has enough energy to push them both away from each other. “Tomorrow nightfall. That gives me enough time to rest, but not enough time for Don to realise his men aren’t coming back.”

The fur along the ridge of Sylvia’s tail begins to lie down flat. Gyrus looks like he still wants to argue the matter - but enough has happened for one night.

_ Okay. Rest for now, I’ll go patrol the borders to make sure no others are out there _ , Sylvia says. She glances a little guilty at Gyrus, hands raising a little as if wanting to apologise, before something changes her mind.  _ I’ll be back later. _

Kodya can’t help but notice Gyrus watches her go, a mixed expression on his face. “Don’t worry about it. Sylvia can’t stay mad at anyone for very long - she’s only worried about us.”

“I know,” Gyrus runs a stressed out hand through his hair, ruining what little remains tucked up in it’s ponytail.

“I’ll make sure she’s safe,” Nephthys voice reassures them. “It’s not something I like to do very often, but.. I’m worried that she’ll do something reckless.” 

As they watch, the soft light that envelopes her willow slowly begins to dim, until all that is left is the wind rustling through her branches.

“Neph is connected to all the trees in the forest,” Kodya explains, having already spotted the question on Gyrus’ lips. “Like she said, she doesn’t like to do it as leaving her main tree can be dangerous, but she can project herself into all the different trees around here, which allows her to keep an eye on everything in the forest. She’ll come back with Sylvia before dawn.”

“Is she able to help Sylvia if she ran into trouble?”

“No, her powers are very neutral,” Kodya says, slowly easing himself down from her roots.

“Hey, you’re meant to be resting,” Gyrus immediately grabs Kodya’s arm to stop him. “If I’m going to agree to all of this, you can at least do as you promised.”

“I stink of blood and humans, I would like to clean off before I go to sleep. Is that okay with you, kid?” he good naturedly flicks at the tip of Gyrus’ nose, who huffs angrily at him, grabbing at his hand to stop another assault. 

“Fine. But I’m coming with you.”

Kodya snorts in amusement, wondering what on earth must be going through his head. Although he can’t help but notice Gyrus doesn’t let go of his hand.


End file.
